Guardians of the Grail
by Fallen Angel of the Light
Summary: Five men are called upon to become the hidden guards of Princess Serena
1. Prolouge

Guardians of the Grail  
Prologue  
  
Lying silently, the five young men slept in the crystal gardens of the Moon Kingdom. Dressed in dark overalls, they had fallen where they had stood after a long hard day of managing the gardens of Queen Selenity. It was hard work, but they enjoyed it; gardening was in all of their blood. As they continued to sleep a sudden burst of light exploded above them. Startled awake the men turned towards the light in awe and fear they found that the light emanated off of a man. Only this was not a true man. He floated in the air effortlessly, and had shining golden hair, milky white skin, and wore a loose tunic. He was well developed and as he opened his mouth to speak it sounded like a mixture between thunder and bells. "Hark men, speak your names?"  
"I'm...I'm Nijore," stammered the first one.  
"My name is Asoka," said the second one.  
"I go by the name Jokune," said the third.  
"Uwe," came the fourth ones reply.  
"And I am Ikhun," said the fifth.  
"Nijore, Asoka, Jokune, Uwe, Ikhun, do you know who I am?" asked the mysterious visitor.  
"Are you not the one we were told about in the bedtime stories of our youth," asked Asoka.  
"I am indeed," replied the man, "I am the Herald of the Bearer of the Grail and it is my duty to appoint its protectors."  
"But the Bearer has not come yet," said Uwe in a confused tone.  
"I am here to tell you that the Bearer has come. She is born tonight, the Moon Princess, Princess Serena, The Bearer of the Grail."  
"It's not possible," yelled out Nijore, "Tonight? Where is she? Why have the bells not tolled in her honor?"  
"It cannot be tonight that her birth is revealed. Her guardians first need to be summoned," said the Herald as he started floating downwards slowly.  
"But why come here?" asked Ikhun.  
"I have a feeling you shouldn't have asked him that Ikhun," said Jokune.  
"I am the creator of the protectors. And I have chosen you five."  
"But you can't," yelped Uwe, "We're gardeners, not warriors. Isn't there someone better suited than we simple men?"  
"Yeah, come on," pleaded Ikhun.  
"Silence!" roared out the Herald. "You have been chosen. But do not fear you will not go into your duty without power."  
The Herald nodded his head and each of the gardeners gasped as their overalls changed into black loose fitting pants and white kung fu jackets as soft slippers wrapped around their feet. On the top of each of their right hands a small tattoo appeared each one of the Grail with a sword behind it.   
"Behold the Guardians of the Bearer of the Grail!" roared the Herald as he rose high into the air. "You are no longer five but one! From now until the ends of time you will be the unseen guardians of Princess Serena! Now, speak your names!"  
"I am Crystilos, the diamond warrior!" yelled out Nijore.  
"My name is Seismicanus, commander of the Ground!" yelled out Asoka  
"I am Cirrus, the sky guardian!" yelled out Jokune.  
"My name is Shadow-ka, master of the shadows," yelled out Uwe.  
"And I am Seamanus-the ocean watcher!" yelled out Ikhun.  
"Excellent!" roared out the Herald, "Go now and present yourselves to Queen Serenity! She must know of your creation!"  
"Yes!" they yelled out as one. "For the princess and the Grail!"  



	2. Prophecy of the Shadows

Guardians of the Grail  
Chapter 1 The Prophecy of the Shadows  
  
  
"Your highness, men are here to see you. They say that it is urgent," said the servant girl to her mistress, Queen Selenity.  
"Who are they?" asked the queen as she sat in her chair rocking slowly with her new daughter in her arms.   
"I do not know, but they have a strange mark on their hands. It is a cup with a sword behind it."  
"What?" exclaimed Selenity, "Let them in immediately, and bolt the door after they enter here, understand?"  
"Yes my queen," said the servant with a bow before running off to fulfill the order. Moments later the five guardians walked calmly through the large doors. Seeing their queen and their new charge they all fell to their knees with their faces towards the ground. Rising slowly the queen cradled her newborn daughter in her arms and said, "Welcome Guardians of the Grail. My name is Queen Selenity, and this," she said kindly as she held her baby out, "is my new daughter, Princess Serena. Look now upon our universe's savior."  
Rising slowly the five men, all towering over the queen looked down in wonder as their eyes fell on the girl. She had creamy skin, and wisps of golden hair. As they gazed upon her she awoke and stared up at them with her huge blue eyes. Eyes shining brightly, she smiled and reached out to them with her small arms. Looking a bit cautious at first, the closest, Seamanus, reached out and took the small girl in her arms. Looking at her momentarily, he passed her over to Seismicanus, then to Crystilos who passed her over to Cirrus, who finally passed her to Shadow-ka. Taking her in his arms, he looked down at her and then gave her back to her mother. Suddenly his body went rigid and he soullessly motioned for them all to look upon the wall. With his long graceful fingers, he began to form shadow puppets. As he did this he spoke in a deep gravely voice,   
"This is the destiny of Usagi, the rabbit of the moon," he said as he formed a circle with his hands and placed a small rabbit in it.   
"Her home shall be destroyed," he continued and showed the shadow of a tower falling.   
"Her beloved will be ripped from her hands," he changed his shadows into that of a young woman in a gown and a man being torn apart.  
"But she and the moon children will be sent to Earth," he showed them the form of a girl and other small balls floating up to the sky.  
"And there she will fight the ever-present darkness," he droned on as he showed the view of a giant monster raising up to strike down the girl shadow.   
"And Earth, Earth will become the battlefield, and we, the Guardians," Here he presented five figures, "Shall be powerless to help."  
Lowering his hands he continued to speak, "We will be given keys of space and time. We will battle the unseen enemy, we shall help our princess defeat the darkness, but she will never again look up on faces."   
Sinking slowly to the ground the others dropped down to grab their friend. Shaking his head Shadow-ka said in his own voice, "I am sorry my queen but I have been given the power of foresight. What I show in shadows will come to pass. Nothing of the shadows can be rewritten. I am sorry."  
"Destiny cannot be fought, cannot be bargained with, cannot be stopped," said Queen Selenity wisely, "All one can do is try their hardest to make this time their best. So what do you plan to do now?"  
"Well, one of us will always be with the princess," said Crystilos, "She'll never be safe any other way. It will take awhile before she can actually use the Grail, and before that any power she gets from it will probably be instinctual."  
"I will stay the first watch," offered Shadow-ka, "I will be hidden by her side for seven years."  
"Are you up to it?" asked Cirrus.  
"Sure it'll be no problem. Time will just fly," said Shadow-ka.  
"But how are you going to stay hidden, you said yourself that she will never see us again," pointed out Seismicanus.  
"My name is Shadow-ka, remember? I have the special ability to absorb myself into shadows."  
"I accept his offer," said Queen Selenity suddenly, "Until the princess's seventh birthday you are her guardian."  
"Thank you my queen," said Shadow-ka giving a bow.   
"You are most welcome," said the Queen giving them all a nod, "Now then, for the rest of you. Go down to wine cellar in the west wing. Pull open the cork of the center bottle and it will open up a passageway. Follow that passage all the way to a room. In it will be five crystals. Each of you are to touch one. It will pull you in but don't resist. They are special crystals that put you in suspended animation. Until next time, thank you all for risking your own lives to protect my daughter's."  
"Hey, do you think we get hazard pay for this?" asked Seamanus as they journeyed down to their crystal beds. Meanwhile, Shadow-ka stood by a wall and slowly allowed himself to sink into the shadows of the crib.  
"Well kid," he whispered as his figure began to meld into the shadows, "I'll be here for seven years. Try not to get into too much trouble, okay?  



	3. The Eyeless Assassins

Guardians of the Grail   
Chapter 2 The Eyeless Assassins  
  
Silently, the three dark figures darted through the long corridors of the Moon Castle. The creatures was each seven feet tall and had long gangly bodies that were hidden underneath long robes. Their black capes billowed behind them and they wore thick black veils over their faces. Turning down a hallway they stopped at the door of the Princess's nursery. Looking at one another silently the closest to the door reached out with its delicate fingers and stroked the keyhole gently. With a small click the doors opened up and the three creatures slipped inside. Looking around, they spotted the small crib and slowly crept forward while reaching under their capes and pulling out long curved knives. Raising their knives up to stab the young princess as she slept in her crib they were startled by a sudden scream from a wall.   
"Oh no you don't!" yelled out Shadow-ka as he tackled the three mysterious beings. As they fell to the ground in a tangled mass, Shadow-ka leaped up into the air above the fallen creatures, flipped over in mid-air, and brought his knees down into the stomach of the first creature. The creature shot up and gasped for air as Shadow-ka drove his knees deeper and deeper in. Turning, he saw a second one running to get to the crib and follow through with its mission. Jumping forward he grasped the stunned assassin by a long arm and threw it headlong into his two accomplices. As the three creatures struggled to their feet, Shadow-ka leaped into the fray again, hands and feet blurring as he struck each of the three creatures repeatedly. Turning on their heels, the three attempted to run and escape but Shadow-ka grabbed the nearest by his cape and smashed his face into a wall stunning him. Reaching out his arms to his left and right, he called out, "Shadow...Kamas!"  
In each hand a kama, a small scythe with a sharp blade and short wooden handle, appeared. Springing into the air, Shadow-ka took aim and yelled out, "Shadow Slashing!"  
As he yelled the words his hands suddenly seemed to disappear as he slashed repeatedly at the backs of the two assassins simultaneously. Dropping to the ground between his foes, he turned back at the two beings that continued to stand there temporarily. After a moment the creatures fell onto their grounds and shriveled up before disappearing in wisps of smoke. Turning back he saw where the other one had fallen and walked over to it. Sensing it's impending attack, Shadow-ka feinted one more step and watched as the creature leaped for him. Sidestepping the attack easily, Shadow-ka brought his elbow down on the creatures lean back and then brought his knee up to it's face. Falling onto the floor, the creature gasped as Shadow-ka grabbed it by the front of its cape and growled into its face, "Who sent you?"  
"I will never tell," gasped the creature struggling to get away from the angered warrior. Taking one of his kamas he held it to the monsters covered face and said, "Well would you rather have my blade ask you for me?"  
"I will never tell," repeated the creature cringing at the site of the blade.  
"Is that so?" asked Shadow-ka menacingly and then in a sudden motion reached out to slash the creatures forehead. The creature screeched as it pulled back and Shadow-ka chopped off the veil that hid the creature's face. As the veil dropped away Shadow-ka drew back in astonishment. The creatures face had no eyes or nose on its face and possessed only two small holes for ears and a small circular mouth that was ringed with small jagged teeth.   
"What are you," whispered Shadow-ka as the creature scooted slowly away.  
"I and my former accomplices are the Eyeless Assassins. Our bodies can sense vibrations in the air and thus allow us to sense where objects are."  
"Why are you here?" snarled Shadow-ka grabbing both his kamas.   
"I have been sent here to destroy that child. I'm getting paid a whole lot of money for this."  
"Trying to kill an innocent baby girl on my watch you freak?" asked Shadow-ka as he brought his blades up, "Sorry, but not on my watch. Shadow Slashing!"  
Instantly his hands vanished as the blades sliced through the air with deadly precision. The assassin tried to scream but was cut short by the hums of Shadow-ka's blades. After a few moments's he stopped and the assassin fell to the ground and vanished in a wisp of smoke. Breathing heavily, Shadow-ka turned around and stored his kamas. Walking over to the cradle, he stared down at the baby girl and said, "Boy, three months and already your making your Uncle Shadow-ka work his head off."  
Turning back the wall he allowed himself to slowly shrink back into the shadows, until all that was left of him were the sounds of Princess Serena's shallow breathing.   
  



	4. Switching Places

  
Chapter 3  
Switching Places  
  
"Damn it," muttered Shadow-ka under his breath as he stared at the setting sun. He was currently hidden underneath a balcony as he kept an eye on the young princess as she played croquet with her mother.  
  
"You were suppose to be here an hour ago," said Shadow-ka to nobody in particular as he continued to watch. It was the Queen's turn and she gave the ball a perfect a smack right through a wicket. As the princess went to take her turn, Shadow-ka caught a sense of foreboding. Looking below him, he saw the gardener below him slowly come up to a kneeling position. He pulled back his wide-brimmed hat and with a smooth motion reached for a knife hidden in his boots. Pulling back his arm, the gardener prepared to strike at the Princess.   
  
"Oh no!" yelled out Shadow-ka in his head as he dropped down to attack this man.   
  
Before he even finished letting go of the minute grips he had been using, he heard the sound of a sharp string come flying through the air. He watched in amazement as an almost transparent string wrapped itself around the man's arm, keeping him from throwing the dagger. A second string appeared and wrapped itself around the neck and lifted him up into the air. Stunned Shadow-ka watched as the assassin spasmed a few inches above the ground trying to scream. Shadow-ka had seen enough and scrambled up the balcony to see who had saved his charge.   
  
"Hey there Shadow-ka, fancy meeting you here," said Cirrus lazily as he gave the wires around his hands one last tug and then let the body go.   
  
"You saved the princess?" asked a stunned Shadow-ka.  
  
"No, it was some other magical guardian," said Cirrus sarcastically, "Your time is up. I'll take her for the next seven years. You need to rest."  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Shadow-ka, "How will you hide?"  
  
"See these big white feathery things on my back," said Cirrus as he turned around, "They're called wings. I can hide in the rafters."  
  
"Okay, just a few things though. Sometimes in the middle of the night she'll start to stir. If you sing her a lullaby it will put her back to sleep. Um, her math is kind of hard and so I've been leaving little notes of help. She thinks that they're from her nurse. Don't worry if she goes to jump off the craters with her friends, I've checked the water and it's deep enough."  
  
"Um Shadow-ka, really it's okay," said Cirrus reassuringly, "Just leave it to me. I can handle it."  
  
"Alright, I'm going to sleep," said Shadow-ka as he absorbed himself back into the shadows and headed off to the crystals.  
  
"I hope it's not always this exciting," said Cirrus to himself as he silently swooped down to hide the body of the newest failed assassin.  



End file.
